Trump asks Pentagon to plan military parade

Washington, (IANS) President Donald Trump has asked for a military parade and the Pentagon is reviewing potential dates, Pentagon spokesman Charlie Summers has confirmed.

The spokesman on Tuesday described the planning process as being in its “infancy”, reports CNN.

In response to the news, White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said in a statement that Trump had asked the Defence Department to “explore” the idea.

“President Trump is incredibly supportive of America’s great service-members who risk their lives every day to keep our country safe. He has asked the Department of Defence to explore a celebration at which all Americans can show their appreciation,” Sanders said.

According to a Washington Post report on Tuesday, at a recent meeting between Trump and top military brass, Trump’s wishes were “suddenly heard as a presidential directive”.

“The marching orders were: I want a parade like the one in France,” a military official told the Washington Post.

“This is being worked at the highest levels of the military.”

Trump was French President Emmanuel Macron’s guest on Bastille Day last year, and later called the French military parade he witnessed “one of the greatest parades” he had ever seen.

He said last September in a conversation with Macron that when he came back from France he wanted a military parade on the Fourth of July in Washington.

Trump’s call for a military parade might be hitting a few snags, according to The Washington Post report.

Shipping tanks and military hardware into Washington could cost millions of dollars, and that military officials said they were unsure how to pay for it, the daily added.

After the Gulf War in 1991, the US put on a victory celebration replete with service-members and military gear.